Winscombe ladies 1st XI lost narrowly to Bridgwater in their first match of the New Year.

Winscombe Ladies 1st XI 1

Bridgwater Ladies 1st XI 2

WINSCOMBE ladies made a good return to league form in their first league match of 2013, narrowly missing out on a point in a closely-fought game.

Winscombe attacked well with Leanne Gardner, Kerri Willis, Megan Coe and Gabriella Richardson battling hard up front. Midfielders Michelle Isgar and Chloe Brown worked hard and played good hockey and captain Kelly Clark, despite tight marking by Bridgwater, still managed a good solid performance.

Despite this, it was Bridgwater who opened the scoring when Winscombe lost the ball in open play and were left exposed in defence.

Winscombe were persistent in their pursuit of an equaliser. Leanne Gardner, with good movement in the D, was unlucky not to convert a cross from the right.

A good ball out of defence from Charlie Edwards led to a good attack from Sarah Holland and Willis, who was unlucky when the keeper saved her shot, but Holland picked up the rebound with a solid pass to Richardson who connected spectacularly to convert the cross and level the scores.

Despite an outstanding performance in goal, earning Kate Walker player of the match, Bridgwater managed to go ahead again. Winscombe worked hard to maintain the attack and look for the equaliser.

The defence of Charlie Edwards, Juju O’Sullivan, Caroline Marsh and Caitlin Flood battled well and provided good attacking balls to the midfield and forwards. But Bridgwater thwarted attempts to even the score, taking all three points.

Bridgwater Ladies 2nd XI 1

Winscombe Ladies 2nd XI 5

A CONFIDENT and energetic start to the new year from Winscombe 2nd XI ladies hockey team saw them convincingly beat local rivals Bridgwater with a resounding 5-1 win.

A good passage of play from the Winscombe midfield players resulted in a superb cross from Trudie Lynham, which was well converted by Claudia Routhorn-James to give Winscombe the lead.

Winscombe’s second goal came from a break from the midfield and Hannah Quantick was well placed to sweep the ball into the net to score her first league goal for the club to give Winscome a 2-0 lead at half-time.

Winscombe were pleased to score an early goal after the break, with Routhorn-James again converting. Bridgwater pulled a goal back, but Winscombe responded by consolidating their lead with goals from Becky Matthews and Routhorn-James, who picked up her hat-trick with a well-timed finish.

Central midfielder and captain, Vicky Calder was deservedly voted the John Hodge Solicitors player of the match, closely followed by Ella Horwood.

Mid Somerset Ladies 2nd XI 3

Winscombe Ladies 3rd XI 0

THIS was always a tough ask for the third team, facing a strong Mid Somerset team who are second in the table.

Winscombe forwards Shirley Hartshorne and Vicki Pagett applied pressure to the Mids goal, while right wing Amy Knapman made some penetrating runs onto some delightful passes from Alice Sloman and Helen Sinclair.

Laura Harvey came on to further strengthen Winscombe’s attacking play, supported by Rachel Wallace. Sarah Kempster worked well with Emma Whitehead to set up centre forward Vicki Pagett.

However, Winscombe were unable to convert any of their chances and were made to pay when two soft goals were conceded making it 0-2 at the break.

Several good saves were made by Winscombe goalie Vicky Look, as Jo Hann and Amy Cheeseborough marshalled the Winscombe defence. Mids’ attacking pressure paid off with a third goal halfway through the second half.

Thirteen-year-old Ella Byrne worked hard, while the John Hodge Solicitors player of the match was Rachel Wallace.

Winscombe Ladies Hockey Club train and plays at Hans Price Academy in Weston and has three teams playing league hockey, a development squad and thriving junior section (under-13s).

For more information, go to www.pitchero.com/clubs/winscombeladieshockeyclub

Weston Ladies 1st XI 2

Cheddar Ladies 1st XI 3

WESTON ladies faced a strong Cheddar side and both teams started positively, despite the horrendous weather conditions.

However, Cheddar converted their first short corner of the match and immediately Weston knew they had to up their game. Brilliant movement of the ball from Westgate, Tuxford and Gibbins down the left hand side led to a cracking goal from the top of the D by Kingscott on her reverse.

At 1-1, both teams fought well for the ball but a scrappy goal from Cheddar put Weston on the backfoot again. Crandon’s powerful strike was denied by a fantastic save by the Cheddar keeper, but on the break, a run by a Cheddar forward into the D was too much and another goal was scored.

At 3-1, Weston pushed on and a skilful drive into the D by Draycott created another short corner opportunity. A well-rehearsed move prevailed, pulling the ball wide to Bellinger, who accurately crossed to Tuxford to find the backboard with ease.

At 3-2 and only minutes to spare, Cheddar hung on to win the match.

Mercedes Benz of Weston player of the match was Emma Gibbins.